cosmetics

Get this: While the European Union has banned over 1,100 ingredients from cosmetics, the United States has blacklisted only 10. That’s a jaw-dropping difference, if you ask me. So what gives? Are our chaps across the pond overly cautious in weeding out potentially harmful chemicals or is America taking a slack approach to nixing major health hazards?

Kristen Campbell was sensitive to most eye makeup. Nevertheless, she persisted valiantly in her quest for smoky eyes, but even 100 percent hypoallergenic mascaras and liners would leave her eyes puffy. Each time she had a bad reaction, the 29-year-old switched brands, but nonirritating makeup eluded her.

You try to buy food from your local farmers’ market and support local businesses as much as you can, so why not do the same with your beauty products? All you need to do is follow the lead of spas across the country.

Lipstick, eyeliner, mascara, perfume—Jessica Assaf applied them all, and more, before she hit 12. And by her mid teens, she estimates she was using 15 to 20 beauty products a day. Like many girls, Assaf was indoctrinated into the beauty culture at a young age, with makeover-themed birthday parties as early as kindergarten and trips to the nail salon starting in grade school.

Companies now market makeup to girls as young as 3—and the health implications are huge.

Lipstick, eyeliner, mascara, perfume—Jessica Assaf applied them all, and more, before she hit 12. And by her mid teens, she estimates she was using 15 to 20 beauty products a day. Like many girls, Assaf was indoctrinated into the beauty culture at a young age, with makeover-themed birthday parties as early as kindergarten and trips to the nail salon starting in grade school.

Companies now market makeup to girls as young as 3—and the health implications are huge.

In our hunt to find the healthiest skincare products available, we slathered on hundreds of serums, scrubs, and shampoos. Here are the ones we can't live without the winners of Natural Solutions' first-ever Beauty With a Conscience Awards.

Is it possible for your favorite moisturizer or shampoo to be done with you, before you’re ready to throw it into the trash? You bet. In fact, experts say it may be time to clean out your shower or medicine cabinet because you may be using products well beyond their shelf life.